Your Topic Suggestions for The NINES (2012)

The issue of homosexuality is not going away for the church. What is your response when a gay couple starts attending your church, or when they want to be baptized or join your membership? How do you communicate in loving, yet biblical ways to reach gays and lesbians, who need Jesus just as much as everyone else? You WILL need to answer these questions. How you answer them will dramatically influence the future of your church.

Most churches are bloated and over-programmed. A ministry that Aunt Mable started in 1954 is still going, albeit with 4 ladies. Other more harmful programs still have a good amount of interest and attendance, but are diversions... they no longer serve the mission and vision of the church. How do you shut down these well-loved, but draining ministries without alienating those involved? How do you move people from one program to another without them feeling cheated and manipulated?

What's the best way to create disciples? Is it programmable? Is it a system? Or is it purely organic?

We all want to be more like Jesus, but when your preferences, scheduling and family needs come into the picture it can be hard. How can you serve others for the long-term, not burning out, with a kingdom perspective.

the idea of how to let the older generation mentor and transition leadership of the church to the next generation / how the younger generation should respond to the older leadership in place

Looking at how getting volunteers before they are disciples can do more harm than help.

With over 80% of Americas Churches in smaller cities, they carry a huge burden to multiply disciples and churches. They just need the tools & faith. Knowing they don't have to be like the "Big Boys" to make a BIG difference.

All too often, well-intentioned attempts to serve the poor make us feel good, while doing more harm to those we are trying to help. We need to learn about sustainable and healthy ways of partnering with other communities.

“Do Social Justice Issues Help or Hinder the Proclamation of the Gospel? That’s the question. Should the church be all about fixing all the problems in our communities and in the world, or should we just stick with preaching the plan of salvation? Is it possible to do both? And if it’s possible, should we? And how do we respond to other ministries that take a different approach than we do?

There are so many Kingdom dollars being spent in churches which are declining. We've got to redeem some of them, and turn them again into vibrant, healthy, growing churches.

You've got a cocky and arrogant staff member. Or a guy or gal who is incompetent or untrustworthy. Maybe you hired a real jerk. Making staff changes in the church is really tough... in fact "freeing someone's future" is one of the hardest, yet most needed things we need to do from time to time as church leaders. When should you fire a staff member? How should you fire a staff member. Learn from people who've fired and been fired on termination Dos and Don'ts.

How do we move from simply being multi-generational to intergenerational churches? How can we truly disciple through the generations....young learning from old and old learning from young?

You’re in over your head, and the options are not pretty. You’re overstaffed. You’re under budget. And your people are smelling it. There is no momentum. In fact, people are leaving. What do you do? Maybe your scenario isn’t so bleak, but you just don’t have the financial resources to make it to the next step. How do you get there?

Women are gaining leadership in many areas of life, and only in select corners of God's kingdom. In fact, in some Christian circles women are only offered silence and submission. Women's brains are structured different from men, but they bring a lot to the leadership table. It is time to take a candid look at the unique paths and styles of women in leadership and the value they add to the church.

It’s a great problem to have: uncontrollable growth. More and more people are coming every Sunday than you have room for. People are falling through the cracks. You’re internal structures work only for a church half your size. And you don’t have enough leaders to ramp up future programs or even disciple the people you find are now attending. What do you do when Jesus steps on the gas? Learn from those who’ve been traveling the road of ministry like a NASCAR driver on a dirt road.

The local newspaper just wrote an article about your church that is disparaging, or worse yet, totally untrue. Or a disgruntled church member has started a blog about you and your church that compares you to the spawn of Satan. Today, everyone has a printing press, and what they say about your church matters. So how do you deal with a rogue blogger or local newspaper writer? How should you deal with a PR nightmare?

Everything comes to a screeching halt when one of your staff or volunteers is accused of any kind of sexual sin. Moral failure in church leadership happens every single day in America, yet most churches foolishly think it will never happen to them. How can you prepare for the likelihood of sexual sin or moral failure that will in some way touch your ministry at some time in the future? How and when should restoration be offered? Learn from leaders who had had to deal with this crisis in their church firsthand, and from some who have fallen.

How do you develop a teammate rapport with someone you can't be alone with? Why is it that Christian men and women in leadership find the sex thing such a barrier, but people in business manage relationships of mutuality and creativity while avoiding sexual tension and sin?

The Bible is clear on the importance of younger women learning from their elders. However, in the past 3 decades, a combination of external sociocultural realities and generational target marketing tactics employed by churches, women of different generations, especially women in their 60s, 70s or 80s, are rarely in the same room with Millennials and Gen Xers, let alone sharing the wisdom they've gained over a lifetime. As a result, much history is being lost, devalued and perceived as irrelevant, something I've found to be wholly untrue in my conversations with women 30+ years my senior. As a researcher on Millennial women with an interest in intergenerational communication, I think this is an issue of critical importance for the church.

Most churches make their plans based on attracting Christians. Unless you live in a major urban city and/or enjoy stealing sheep, this must change. What is your church unknowingly doing that prevents the unchurched from coming? What could you do specifically to impact the unchurched where you live?

Everyone wants to talk about succession, unless it’s their own. Frankly, succession is a scary topic for most pastors. Everyone wants to leave well (and at the right time), but few are able to plan and execute a flawless transition. When should you leave? How should you leave? What can you do to insure a healthy transition? We’ll learn lessons from transitions that went well, and those that didn’t.

How do you deal with an elder board that is out of control? Every year, thousands of pastors pull their hair out trying to lead a team of people that don't get along, have their own agenda, or simply can't agree on much of anything. How do you best lead your board? What can you do to foster unity, creativity, and action? Getting your board on board is one of the first things great leaders must do.

It can happen in a split second. An angry and crazed person decides to attend your church on a Sunday morning. Maybe it’s a verbal heckling (like what happened recently to Andy Stanley). Maybe it’s far more serious, like a shooting spree (like the horrible day at New LIfe Church in Colorado Springs a few years back). But the reality of today is... you need to be ready for anything... but how?

What if women decided to not show up for church next Sunday? Why does the church mimic Hollywood and Business in the number of women who are "allowed" to lead? is it really a theological issue or have we in fact conformed ourselves to this worlds love affair with power?

Church planting in urban areas is difficult... it's not like 50-100 people are going to move to the inner-city and raising & sustaining funds among low income people takes skill & miracles. Yet, we MUST reach our cities! How are we gonna make it happen??